Insulitis in Type 1 Diabetes: A Sticky Problem

摘要

Lymphocytic infiltration in the islets of Langerhans is generally recognized as the defining lesion in young patients with recent-onset type 1A diabetes. In a landmark article published in Diabetes in 1965, Gepts (1) described insulitis in 70% of cases with acute diabetes and found that the lesion only affected islets with residual β-cells in pancreatic organs that had otherwise lost most of their β-cell mass. He concluded that the disease was probably caused by a protracted β-cell-specific (auto)imniune process, thereby initiating a domain of study that has led to many new insights into the disease process, the identification of preclinical markers, and the definition of new intervention strategies.